While the blood-thinner Pradaxa has undoubtedly become popular since its release onto the market, patients may face serious bleeding risks of the drug. If you or someone you love have suffered from internal bleeding injuries while taking the blood-thinner Pradaxa, you may be able to file a lawsuit against the drug’s manufacturer.

Background of the Blood-Thinner Pradaxa

Blood-thinners, also known as anticoagulants, are a common treatment for blood clotting, a condition that can cause serious injuries or fatal complications.

Pradaxa is one of the most popular anticoagulant options, and is manufactured by Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals. Pradaxa was introduced to the market after approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2010, less than a decade ago. Pradaxa is also sold under its generic name, dabigatran.

Though it’s a relatively new addition to the market, beginning to replace the old staple anticoagulant warfarin, millions of patients have already made the switch to Pradaxa.

Unfortunately, the drug has been linked with serious complications. Some patients claim that blood-thinning drugs like Pradaxa can actually cause more harm than the problems they are meant to prevent. Some have even gone on to file a Pradaxa lawsuit against its manufacturer, claiming they were not adequately warned about the danger associated with this medication.

Pradaxa Side Effects

While any anticoagulant can cause excessive bruising and bleeding, the blood-thinner Pradaxa is reportedly more dangerous. The function of an anticoagulant is to lessen blood clotting, and an unavoidable side effect of this is a tendency to bruise more easily and bleed more freely.

In general, this doesn’t become too much of an issue. Patients may simply notice more bruises than usual. In a serious internal bleeding event, however, a patient may bleed excessively to the point of severe complications like brain hemorrhaging—or, in the worst cases, even death. Pradaxa’s risks are allegedly more severe than the average anticoagulant.

Even with these potential bleeding problems, anticoagulants generally come with an antidote to reverse the effects. Warfarin, the leading blood-thinner option for decades, and many other anticoagulants have available antidotes. There was a period of time after Pradaxa’s release onto the market when it lacked such an antidote, placing patients at serious risk. Pradaxa now has an antidote available to counteract its side effects, but it may have come too late for some patients.

The danger posed by these blood-thinner safety problems is significant: hundreds of Pradaxa bleeding problems have resulted in fatalities so far.

Filing a Pradaxa Lawsuit

Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals has been hit with thousands of lawsuits for inadequate blood-thinner safety warnings. Lawsuits allege that the blood-thinner’s manufacturer failed to adequately warn the public, as well as the medical community as a whole, about the potential blood -hinner safety problems linked with their drug.

If you or someone you love has taken the blood-thinner Pradaxa and has subsequently experienced any of the above symptoms, such as excessive bleeding or brain hemorrhaging, you may have cause for filing a Pradaxa lawsuit. Filing a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by excessive bleeding problems, but it can help to alleviate the financial burden incurred by medical expenses and lost wages.